The Athlete's Lawyer

Participants in the Annual VTLA Tennis Tournament held in Colonial Williamsburg and sponsored by Abrams Landau, Ltd.

Tennis outdoors in the sunshine ?!!? For the first time in many years, the Annual VTLA Tennis Tournament sponsored by ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., was held outside, in the sunshine, without participants suffering from hyperthermia ! Tournament director Doug Landau oversaw a very close competition amongst the female participants, with a three-way tie for first settled by a championship match on the Williamsburg center court. Leesburg attorney Morgan Whitlock emerged as the women’s champ, along with men’s champion Ben whose lovely bride Emily Van De Ven was a top woman player and EPS structured settlements professional. Other players included: The Honorable James Almand, Richmond’s Sara Allen, VCU Assistant General Counsel and perennial top finisher Susan Ferguson, Falls Church attorney David Falcon, Arlington medical malpractice lawyer and Maccabiah Games gold medalist Bill Artz.

The 28th running of the Apple Blossom 10k Race attracted over 1,200 participants today. Because it is run along some of the Apple Blossom Festival Grand Feature Parade Route, runners are greeted and cheered from the crowds along the course. Because people come from neighboring states and want to get good seats on the parade route, there are pick up trucks backed up to the race course and people camped out on blankets from the wee hours. This year’s winners tore up the UST&F certified course in under 30:00, averaging 4:41/mile ! Chasing $8,300 in prize money, the elites made sure that area residents would only be contending for the Masters, Grand Masters and locals’ awards. While the TriathlonTrialLawyer was way off his best Apple Blossom time, his 6:48/mile average in the wet, cool drizzle was good enough to finish ahead of 1,100 other runners and finish 2nd out of 74 men in his age group. Even better was the fact that the rain stopped for the wonderful parade that afternoon !

The 13TH ANNUAL VICTIMS’ RIGHTS 5K RUN / WALK was held today in collaboration with the Aimee Willard Endorsement Scholarship Fund. Workplace injury and crime victims’ lawyer Doug Landau has participated int his event a number of times, as the 5 km. run passes near his original office in Fairfax and tours much of the GMU campus. Proceeds from the race and 2 mile fun walk around Patriot Circle go to Rape Aggression Defense Program (RAD) & Sexual Assault Services Victims of Violence Fund. The Triathlon Trial Lawyer has often finished in the top 5. However, this year, he was not able to catch his friend (and Masters runner) Peter Blank at the finish line, even though Blank was in the walking race ! Blank won the walking competition; Landau was in the top 20 among the runners in 20:00, and both helped to raise the average age of the participants !

Leesburg and Loudoun County injury lawyer Doug Landau is often asked if an injured victim can bring a lawsuit against a negligent driver, product maker, dog owner or property manager for making a pre-existing condition or underlying disease worse. The short answer, according to the trial team at ABRAMS LANDAU, is “yes.” Doug Landau adds that while the innocent victim cannot collect damages for the pre-existing condition, they can seek redress for the worsening of the condition caused by these careless and reckless defendants.

As an example, a case involving the worsening of pre-existing scoliosis was brought on behalf of a 16-year-old female high school student. This innocent girl was driving home when her vehicle was hit head on by the defendant’s vehicle, which had traveled 495 feet through the median and then into oncoming traffic. The Defendant driver’s blood alcohol content was 0.32 per cent, and this was his third DUI. He had been drinking “Wild Irish Rose” all weekend. Defendant, after being asked by the trooper if he had anything to drink, responded “Oh, hell yeah,” Read the rest of this entry »

While in Washington, D.C. for a Deposition, Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau managed to test his early season speed at the DCRRC monthly “Tidal Basin 3k.” This was the 422nd running of this low-key event in our Nation’s Capitol. With the gorgeous spring weather and buds just starting to form on the cherry trees, the runners were treated to optimal conditions and XS Energy Drink before & after the race (courtesy of Julie & Dan Clark of Clark Health Zone).

In addition to record-setting racer Ted Poulos, and DC Running Coach Michael Hamberger, 2:14 Kenyan marathoner Elisha Tanui, on his first day in Washington DC to run SunTrust National Marathon, jogged the race and then signed autographs. Hamberger (shown with The AthletesLawyer Landau, above left, & the Washington Monument) finished runner up in under 10 minutes. With such a stacked field, Landau was far back in the listings, making the top 3rd in 12:05.

However, “Half of winning is just showing up.” Landau won a case of XS Energy Drink in the post-race raffle. The Herndon Reston Virginia sports injury and accident lawyer is shown here on his tippy toes (L-R) with frequent Potomac Valley road racer and walker Peter Blank, Tanui and Julie Clark of Clark Health Zone.

Those who know the busy and energetic multi-state trial lawyer may question the wisdom of giving him anything caffeinated. Nevertheless, these pictures are evidence of the “you’ll never know unless you show” race and trial motto Landau and the ABRAMS LANDAU team espouse. Doug Landau hopes to see other friends, clients and their families at future trials and competitions.

The 2009 USA Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships at Prince George’s Sports and Learning Center in Landover Maryland attracted some of the world’s top masters athletes, including at least 12 Olympians and 58 reigning world record holders according to the Cool Running site. With the theme of lifetime fitness, the meet is open to all athletes 30 and up. The oldest competitor is 95. TriathlonTrialLawyer Doug Landau had the opportunity to compete in the 45-49 age group.

Nearly 1,000 athletes – a record for the USA Masters Indoor Championships since the meet’s 1974 beginnings and the most for any masters indoor meet ever in North America – will compete. The MD-DC-VA area is home to an unusually large number of masters athletes, and the Herndon Reston Virginia area injury and disability lawyer Doug Landau ran as a long-time member of the D. C. Road Runners Club (DCRRC). Shown to the left are Julie Hayden from the Athena Track Club and D.C. area photographer and race correspondent George Banker.

There are very few things that can keep me from finishing a race I have signed up for, especially where I am an event sponsor. As a Gold Sponsor of the 2009 USA Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships in Landover, Maryland at the Prince Georges Sports & Learning Complex, I had registered for the 3 km (just under 2 miles) on Friday, the mile on Saturday and the half on Sunday. However, family comes first, and I was thrilled to be visiting family in New York City after depositions Thursday in Flemington, New Jersey. The absence of the TriathlonTrialLawyer was not missed; there was plenty of excitement for spectators, track aficianados and participants alike Read the rest of this entry »

Running through a swamp behind a client’s home may not be most lawyers’ idea of a good time, but Doug Landau of ABRAMS LANAU, Ltd. is not your typical trial lawyer. While attending the VTLA Annual Convention in Williamsburg, Virginia, the Triathlon Trial Lawyer was able to find a local race to participate in after his duties as a volunteer earlier the same morning. Landau was a race volunteer for the Convention Fun Run.

The Herndon Reston injury and disability lawyer is pictured at the Jamestown High School track after the Colonial Road Runners Dismal Swamp 5km. The Colonial Runners do a splendid job and their events are challenging, held in unique locations and fun.

Shown here with long time DCRRC competitors, race directors and volunteers, is Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau and Ed Grant, Eammon McEvilly and Pat Finn. Ed Grant has been an officer and race director, and had the distinction of driving the “DCRRC-mobile” around Franklin Farms while Landau did his training runs and rides. McEvilly has the fastest PR time on the Fort Hunt Course where they had just run, and was the Senior counsellor at the Alexandria Department of Rehabilitative Services office. Eammon now provides private vocational rehabilitation, placement, assessment and related services and has helped ABRAMS LANDAU clients in Social Security Disability cases. Finn, a stalwart at the DCRRC monthly Tidal basin and other District area runs, ran with Landau at many mid-week summer races over the years.

The Herndon Reston injury and disability lawyer leaves today to attend the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (“VTLA”) annual convention. In Williamsburg, Landau is scheduled to be a volunteer at the annual 5 km race Saturday morning. In the afternoon, the ABRAMS LANDAU lawyer will volunteer and direct the annual tennis tournament that he has sponsored and run for 20 years. His tennis tourney will take place at the same time as the annual VTLA golf tournament that pits lawyers, judges and other law office professionals in competition for the “Norman Landau Cup.” This prize is named after Doug Landau’s late father. The silver cup was generously given to VTLA by this year’s lifetime achievement award winner Robert Hall. Mr. Hall was Doug Landau’s first boss when the TriathlonTrialLawyer came to Virginia to practice law. Hall is still a mentor of Landau’s, and he practices with the Reston law firm Hall, Sickels, Frei & Mims.

Top local over-50 Masters Runner Mark Malander ran a strong race at the USA Cross Country Championships. And he brought his own cheering section ! Triathlon TrialLawyer Doug Landau heard Malander’s wife Loretta at the crest of one of the hills of the challenging Derwood, Maryland race course. Finishing 4th in the Masters race in 29:08, Malander (50) was competing for the Potomac Valley Track Club. In this tough cross country race, Malander averaged better than 5:50 per mile pace. Both Mark and Loretta are accomplished Oak Hill, Virginia runners.

USA Track & Field announced that the nation’s premier cross country event will feature $47,000 in prize money. The championships will be hosted by the Montgomery Country Road Runners Club at Agricultural History Farm Park. In addition to the national titles on the line in Derwood, open and junior men and women will qualify to represent Team USA at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships March 28 in Amman, Jordan. Highlights of the 2009 USA Cross Country Championships will be televised on February 15 during ESPN coverage of the Tyson Invitational. The championships will consist of six cross country championship races for men’s and women’s categories with national titles on the line for junior, masters and open divisions.